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Dante knocked on Felicia's door at 2:50 AM. A beat later, soft footsteps shuffled closer, and the door cracked open to reveal Felicia wrapped in a baggy gray sweatshirt and loose cotton shorts. Her hair was mussed and eyes half-lidded with drowsiness.
"Darling?" She yawned, rubbing one eye with the back of her hand. "Do you need something?"
"We had a promise, remember?"
The question hit like a splash of cold water. Her posture straightened, and the sleepy haze drained out of her expression so fast it was almost funny. "I thought you wouldn't… after everything."
"I made a promise." He pushed the door wider and invited himself in, crossing the room to drop onto the edge of her bed. He found her still standing there, one hand planted on her hip, staring at him. "You want to leave like that? It's fine with me."
Felicia raised an eyebrow, still worried. "Doesn't your invisibility drain you mentally? You sure you're up for this?"
She had seen him suffer nosebleeds when using his invisibility, and she refused to sacrifice him to save her father.
"I've already recovered."
Five hours of sleep was more than enough to bring his body back to peak condition.
Felicia turned away and walked to her closet. "Silver publicly demolished Norman's plan. How do you think he'll retaliate against her?"
"Why does it feel like you're worried about Silvija?"
"Didn't you tell me to get along with her?" She picked the Black Cat suit hanging inside and brought it to the bed beside him. "Now I kinda like that thick-headed queen. A queen without any pride whatsoever."
He had witnessed their friendship in action firsthand on the cruise. Still, it was a bit surreal to see the two on friendly terms with each other, especially after how their first meeting had went. If Felicia was a sleek cat, Silvija was a wild wolf. Two had clashing personalities, but perhaps that made them bond with each other in his absence.
"Sounds like you've already charmed her." He chuckled, sliding back a bit to watch the strip show. "How does it feel having real friends?"
"Not terrible." She grabbed the hem of her sweatshirt and pulled it over her head. Her hair spilling messily around her bare shoulders, falling to cover the cleavage revealed by her simple white bra. "Gwen counts as one. She is pretty chill."
The mention of Gwen dragged his mind straight back to that flash of a kiss. That moment still bothered him. Was it just gratitude? Guilt? Or something else entirely? Only Gwen knew what it meant.
He shook off the spiral of thoughts and focused on admiring the splendid figure of his half-girlfriend. "You said Norman wanted you because of your potential. He'll probably try the same approach with Silvija."
She stepped out of her shorts, standing there in just a white bra and matching underwear. Too simple a design for someone obsessed with fashion. "You already have a plan to help her."
"Nope."
Felicia turned to face him with a thoroughly skeptical look, with a hand on her hip. "Are you for real?"
He cleared his throat and glanced away before a certain part of his body decided to react. "I've asked Ava to keep an eye on her. She'll alert me if something goes sideways."
"Last time I saw Ava, she looked like she wanted to rip your head off for juggling three women."
"She loves to exaggerate."
Felicia shook her head and slipped into the Black Cat suit. The whole process took barely ten seconds.
"I'm ready."
As she pulled up the zipper with a grin, a sudden knock rattled the door, making them both freeze. He stood and answered it, finding an unexpected visitor on the other side.
Laura looked up at him through dark lashes, wearing the clothes he had stolen for her—minus the cute winter cap. "I'm here."
"Did you follow my scent?"
She stared at him like he had just asked if water was wet. "I don't need my serum for something this basic… Why are you in her room?"
Felicia yanked the door wider, stepping into view with her arms crossed. "Why are you in my room, sweetheart?"
Laura's gaze flicked to Felicia for half a second in acknowledgement then back to him. "Natasha is waiting."
His eyes moved between them, then he swallowed a sigh. Silvija had treated Laura with respect from the moment she arrived, but Laura had shut herself away from everyone, refusing to trust anyone besides him—and even that trust felt like it came with conditions. After being exploited by nearly everyone in her life, he couldn't exactly blame her.
He nudged Felicia gently with his shoulder. "Laura, come in. We'll leave in a bit."
"Darling," Felicia said with sugary sweetness dripping from her voice. "You never mentioned this was a joint operation."
"Doesn't matter. Our goal stays the same."
Felicia went silent for several heartbeats, then shrugged nonchalantly. "Right. We can use them as meat shields if things go sideways."
It didn't matter if she pulled this off with just him or five other people. As long as they rescued her father, she would consider it a success.
Laura didn't react with anger, only showing that calm look that made her feel like a predator waiting for permission to move.
He stretched a hand toward both of them. "Give me your hands."
Laura's fingers found his immediately, no hesitation whatsoever. That made Felicia's eyes narrow sharply, though she held back from speaking her mind and placed her hand in his as well.
He gave her a quick rundown of the teleportation process, explaining she needed to ride the flow of mystical energy with him.
She blinked in confusion. "What flow are you talking about?"
"Just stick with me," he said. "Try not to panic."
Felicia nodded skeptically, placing her faith in him despite her obvious uncertainty.
He closed his eyes and pictured the space outside Wild Pack's command center. The teleportation took only a moment this time—Oscorp Island was close enough that the jump didn't feel like tearing across the world.
Felicia and Laura both sucked in sharp breaths as their astral forms slammed back into alignment with their bodies, both experiencing that unpleasant lurch that always came with the displacement.
"Sweet mother of—Darling, this is worse than astral sorcery…" Felicia rubbed her belly, looking a bit pale. "But I'll admit this could change the art of stealing. Imagine the possibilities."
Laura gently struck her own chest and grumbled, "I'll never like this."
He had the urge to fix them with Biokinesis, but decided against using it at the moment. Better to let his body recover Biomolecular energy first. He also made a mental note to experiment with creating stable portals instead to allow his allies to step through without any displeasure.
He took a moment to carefully expel the residual mystical energy clinging to their bodies before pulling out his phone and dialing Natasha's number. He had already asked Silvija to grant her clearance before he had crashed for the night.
"Where are you?" she asked him, as if she had been waiting for his call.
"Around the command center."
"Give me a second," Natasha said curtly, then hung up. Seconds later, she emerged from inside the building. Her gaze was sharp even at this hour.
'I'm not the only one who recovers fast.'
Her gaze landed on Felicia at Dante's side, and a knowing smirk tugged at her mouth. "Skullfire actually showed up on time."
"He is here for his bride." Felicia chuckled. "I'm so jealous you get to be his official one. How does it feel having that kind of claim?"
Natasha showed an unamused expression, then she turned to Laura. "If you're on your own now, would you consider taking bounty contracts? I know someone who needs killing."
Laura extended her claws with a grin. "I'll do it for free."
The old comrades still shared a chemistry even if Laura's heart wasn't with SHIELD anymore.
Felicia's eyes went wide and she ducked behind Dante, gripping him like a shield. "Darling, they're bullying me!"
He gave Natasha a blank stare. "Did Fury say anything about reopening negotiations?"
The island incident had effectively ruined their chance to talk, which frustrated him deeply. He wanted to sever Laura's connection with SHIELD once and for all, giving her a clean break from that nightmare.
"Nothing as far as I'm aware." Natasha replied with a thoughtful look. "Coulson said the Director seemed pretty pleased with your performance on the ship."
"I don't want him pleased."
He wanted Fury miserable. That was the bare minimum acceptable payment for giving zero fucks about Laura.
Laura pinched Dante's arm to grab his attention. "What now?"
For all her calmness, he could see the anxiety beneath it. Whatever came next would decide whether she got a life or got dragged back into a cage with a different logo on it.
He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I won't let them drag you back to your old life. Natasha, you're with me on this, right?"
Natasha held Laura's gaze for a long, meaningful moment, the old comrades discussed something through their eyes alone. "Naturally."
Laura's features softened as she nodded.
Felicia watched the exchange in silence, clearly trying to piece together the full picture without asking a single question out loud.
He gestured for everyone to move closer. Laura quietly grabbed his arm without being asked.
Felicia tilted her head with exaggerated sweetness. "Is this one of those group hug moments? Should I get sentimental?"
"I don't believe in sentiments," Natasha said in a flat voice. "I agree with B. F. Skinner for saying emotions are conditioned responses shaped by reward and punishment. They aren't real."
Felicia blinked, then burst out laughing. "Darling, I absolutely adore your bride's sense of humor."
"Me too."
"Ugh, let me be a happy, miserable single woman in peace," Natasha muttered, sounding more tired than angry. She stepped in and placed a hand on Dante's shoulder. "Hurry it up. I want to go home, pour myself some vodka, and sleep until the next symbiote apocalypse."
"Shouldn't you prepare for that level of calamity?"
She gripped his shoulder, smirking. "The Hellfire Duo can handle a million symbiotes. Billions if we give it our best."
"The Hellfire Duo is a nice name for our team."
"It's the official name people gave us," Natasha said wryly. "I'll have to publicly execute you to cross that off my resume."
With how viral the cruise incident had become, she would never get to wipe this from her superhero career. Her name would always be linked with his.
He smiled softly. "I don't think you're strong enough to do that. Feel free to try it though."
Although her Ghost Rider form could be summed up as terrifying, his Death Resonance form was far from weak. If they ever fought seriously, neither side would come out victorious. He might lose in the endurance battle just because of his time limit.
"After this symbiote disaster is over." Natasha gave a dismissive answer.
He connected to Sue Storm's link and wrapped them all in an invisible force field before teleporting directly outside the vault entrance. The displacement was imperceptible over such a short distance.
Last time this hallway had been guarded by Clint, Frank Castle, and Walter. Now it stood completely empty.
'Norman found out.'
It didn't matter either way.
Laura's nose wrinkled. "It reeks of symbiotes everywhere."
Natasha stared at the black, glossy matter covering every surface like a spreading disease. "We have eyes too, Laura."
Felicia put her hands on her hips, looking at them with pity. "You both aren't prepared for how fucked this place is."
Natasha turned to him, her eyebrow raised in silent question: Are you hiding something?
"Whatever you see, don't overreact and mess up my force field," he warned. "I can't put Silvija in a bad spot with the contract. Symkaria's economy depends on it."
Natasha gave a dismissive wave. "Not really a team player, but I'll try my best."
"I hope so."
They moved through the hallways, staying close so none of them drifted outside the force field's coverage.
Natasha glanced sideways at Dante as they walked. "You'll make a terrifying assassin."
Laura nodded once, like she'd already reached the same conclusion.
"Why do that when you can steal priceless artifacts and become obscenely rich?" Felicia grumbled under her breath. "You'll have the money in the world to hire assassins. Why make everything complicated?"
The other two silently approved of Felicia's method. Laura probably was too sheltered to care about money. Natasha had too much guilt to live as a wealthy woman.
"Speaking of simplicity," he said in a mischievous voice. "Most men will use it to peep on girls. I'm also a bit… tempted."
"Darling~," Felicia purred. "I can strip naked for you anytime. Just give me a word."
"Yes," Laura added, dead serious. "It's not a big deal."
Natasha was the only one whose expression turned cold, her eyes narrowing with a dangerous intent. "Try that on me, and I'll shoot you."
"It was a joke, geez," Dante said quickly, raising his hands in surrender. "I'm not that desperate."
"Some people can never get enough of anything," Natasha muttered, shaking her head. "Am I wrong?"
"I can understand that feeling," Felicia admitted shamelessly. "I physically cannot stop myself from stealing things."
"That runs in your blood," Natasha answered, giving him a side-glance. "I'll cover my apartment floor in white powder. It'll keep invisible creeps away."
The last whisper was only meant to warn him. He couldn't help but groan, "I was kidding."
"Call me your bride again, and 'Invisible creep' will be my story for our 'divorce'." She leaned closer, whispering with a smirk, "The media is thirsty for any coverage related to you. They will gobble any story up and run with it."
"Fine. I'll stop mentioning it," he said, relenting under her threat. "It's not funny anyway."
Even if he stopped, the people won't stop. He wasn't losing anything by not bringing it up.
She nodded in approval. "Good choice. It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change."
He scoured the winding hallways, noting far fewer symbiotes than during his last visit. No signs of Walter Hardy or Clint anywhere. He checked every containment pod in the massive holding room—they were all empty now. Left with no other option, he redirected them toward the prisoner section.
They were near the prisoner section when flames suddenly erupted beside Natasha, twisting and coalescing into a burning skull surrounded by flames. The skull's eyes glowed with Hellfire as it addressed Natasha.
"Romanoff," the Spirit of Vengeance spoke in that hollow, echoing voice. "Honor our pact. Punish the sinners under my name."
***
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